No forced conversions in country: FO

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhry on Tuesday rejected the reported allegations of forced conversions in the country as fictitious, politically-motivated and based on mala fide intent to malign Pakistan in the international community.

As per principles of Quran and Sunnah, there is no forced conversion in Islam, the Foreign Office spokesperson stated in response to queries from some media colleagues.

He said no institutionalized or consistent pattern of forced conversions exists in Pakistan.

He said a case in hand is the disclosures of EU DisinfoLab regarding a disinformation spreading network being operated by Indian intelligence agencies.

There have been few incidents of forced conversions by individuals and non-state actors, but there is no evidence of complicity of any state institution.

Whenever such a case is reported, all state institutions take swift action against the perpetrators, he added. In some instances, the spokesperson said the state became party to the case against the perpetrators in the court to ensure speedy justice.

He said: “The foundations of our state are firmly laid on the principles laid down by our founding father Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah and are appropriately reflected in our Constitution.

The constitutional provisions are supplemented further by the legal and administrative framework to protect our minorities from any forced conversion.

Our Judiciary has been vigilant and clear on the promotion and protection of the basic human rights of our minorities.

Moreover, our free media and civil society are acting as independent monitors against any incidence of violation of human rights of any minority community and fostering a culture of accountability and transparency.”